Featured Research

Bevacizumab Combined With Chemotherapy Prolongs Survival For Some Patients With Advanced Lung Cancer

Date:

April 8, 2005

Source:

NIH/National Cancer Institute

Summary:

Preliminary results from a large, randomized clinical trial for patients with previously untreated advanced non-squamous, non-small cell lung cancer show that those patients who received bevacizumab (AvastinTM) in combination with standard chemotherapy lived longer than patients who received the same chemotherapy without bevacizumab.

Share This

Preliminary results from a large, randomized clinical trial for patients with previously untreated advanced non-squamous, non-small cell lung cancer show that those patients who received bevacizumab (AvastinTM) in combination with standard chemotherapy lived longer than patients who received the same chemotherapy without bevacizumab.

Related Articles

The clinical trial was sponsored by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, and conducted by a network of researchers led by the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group. Genentech, Inc., South San Francisco, Calif., which manufactures bevacizumab, provided bevacizumab for the trial under the Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with NCI for the clinical development of bevacizumab.

The Data Monitoring Committee overseeing the trial (known as E4599)* recommended that the results of a recent interim analysis be made public because the study had met its primary endpoint of improving overall survival. Researchers found that patients in the study who received bevacizumab in combination with standard chemotherapy (a treatment regimen of paclitaxel and carboplatin) had a median overall survival of 12.5 months compared to patients treated with the standard chemotherapy alone, who had a median survival of 10.2 months. This difference is statistically significant. Detailed results from this trial will be presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting (ASCO) to be held in Orlando, Fla., on May 13-17, 2005.

"The exciting results of this randomized study reveal, for the first time, an improvement in survival with the addition of a targeted agent to standard chemotherapy in this patient population," said Study Chair Alan B. Sandler, M.D., of the Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tenn.

"This study demonstrates that mechanistic-based interventions such as angiogenesis inhibitors are making important contributions in improving cancer outcomes," said NCI Director Andrew C. von Eschenbach, M.D. "In combination with standard therapies, they can be used for a variety of cancers, leading to increased patient survival."

A total of 878 patients with advanced non-squamous, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who had not previously received systemic chemotherapy were enrolled in this study between July 2001 and April 2004. Patients were randomized to one of the two treatment arms. One patient group received standard treatment -- six cycles of paclitaxel and carboplatin. The second group received the same six-cycle chemotherapy regimen with the addition of bevacizumab, followed by bevacizumab alone until disease progression.

Patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the lung were not included in the study because previous clinical experience suggested that patients with this particular type of NSCLC had a higher risk of serious bleeding from the lung after bevacizumab therapy. Patients with a prior history of frank hemoptysis (coughing up blood) were also not enrolled on the trial.

The most significant adverse event observed in this study was life-threatening or fatal bleeding, primarily from the lungs. This occurred infrequently, but was more common in the patient group that received bevacizumab in combination with chemotherapy than in the patient group that received only chemotherapy. A full description of side effects observed in this trial will be presented at the ASCO Annual Meeting in May, as well.

Bevacizumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody**, is designed to bind to and inhibit vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). VEGF is a protein that plays a critical role in tumor angiogenesis, the formation of new blood vessels to the tumor.

"This trial represents another step in a series of recent important advances in treatment for patients with advanced lung cancer," said James H. Doroshow, M.D., director of NCI's Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis and leader of NCI's Clinical Trials Working Group. "Important progress continues to be made by targeting molecular pathways critical to the growth and survival of cancer cells. It is through better understanding of these molecular processes that significant advances will be made in the treatment of this disease."

An estimated 172,570 people will be diagnosed with lung cancer in the United States in 2005. Lung cancer is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer and the leading cause of cancer-related death in both men and women in this country. An estimated 163,510 deaths from lung cancer will occur in 2005 in the United States, accounting for about 29 percent of all cancer-related deaths in the nation.

###

For more information about cancer, visit the NCI Web site at http://www.cancer.gov or call NCI's Cancer Information Service at 1-800-4 CANCER (1-800-422-6237).

** Monoclonal antibodies are laboratory-produced substances that can locate and bind to specific substances in the body. "Humanized" monoclonal antibodies include some sequences that are the same as those in human antibodies in order to avoid being destroyed by the patient's own immune system.

More From ScienceDaily

More Health & Medicine News

Featured Research

Mar. 3, 2015  New assays can detect malaria parasites in human blood at very low levels and might be helpful in the campaign to eradicate malaria, reports a new study. An international team led by Ingrid Felger, ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015  Adults over the age of 30 only catch flu about twice a decade, a new study suggests. So, while it may feel like more, flu-like illness can be caused by many pathogens, making it difficult to assess ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015  No significant change in home habits of smokers have been observed in the aftermath of a ban on smoking in public spaces, researchers report. Greater inspiration to kick the habit likely comes from ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015  Heart function has been associated with the development of dementia and Alzheimer's disease through a new study. Participants with decreased heart function, measured by cardiac index, were two to ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015  Children of recently separated or divorced families are likelier to drink sugar-sweetened beverages than children in families where the parents are married, putting them at higher risk for obesity ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015  Gastric bypass and similar stomach-shrinking surgeries are a popular option for obese patients looking to lose weight or treat type 2 diabetes. While the surgeries have been linked to a decreased ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015  Most people consume more salt than they need and therefore have a higher risk of heart disease and stroke, which are the two leading causes of death worldwide. But a new study reveals that dietary ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015  Twice as many children born to mothers who took antibiotics during pregnancy were diagnosed with asthma by age 3 than children born to mothers who didn’t take prenatal antibiotics, a new study has ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015  Although sedatives are often administered before surgery, a randomized trial finds that among patients undergoing elective surgery under general anesthesia, receiving the sedative lorazepam before ... full story

Featured Videos

Mom Triumphs Over Tragedy, Helps Other Families

AP (Mar. 3, 2015)  After her son, Dax, died from a rare form of leukemia, Julie Locke decided to give back to the doctors at St. Jude Children&apos;s Research Hospital who tried to save his life. She raised $1.6M to help other patients and their families. (March 3)
Video provided by AP

Looted and Leaking, South Sudan's Oil Wells Pose Health Risk

AFP (Mar. 3, 2015)  Thick black puddles and a looted, leaking ruin are all that remain of the Thar Jath oil treatment facility, once a crucial part of South Sudan&apos;s mainstay industry. Duration: 01:13
Video provided by AFP

Woman Convicted of Poisoning Son

AP (Mar. 3, 2015)  A woman who blogged for years about her son&apos;s constant health woes was convicted Monday of poisoning him to death by force-feeding heavy concentrations of sodium through his stomach tube. (March 3)
Video provided by AP

Related Stories

Sep. 16, 2014  Combining a standard chemotherapy drug with a second drug that stops cells from dividing improves both the survival and response rates for those with advanced cervical cancer, a new study finds. ... full story

Feb. 21, 2014  New research has revealed that women with advanced cervical cancer live about four months longer with the combined use of bevacizumab (Avastinฎ) and chemotherapy compared to chemotherapy alone. ... full story

Dec. 13, 2013  Adding the chemotherapy drug carboplatin and/or the antibody therapy bevacizumab to standard presurgery chemotherapy increased the number of women with triple-negative breast cancer who had no ... full story

Sep. 6, 2012  Treatment with pemetrexed, carboplatin and bevacizumab followed by maintenance pemetrexed and bevacizumab (Pem+Cb+B) is no better than standard therapy with paclitaxel, carboplatin and bevacizumab ... full story

Feb. 1, 2011  An analysis of previous studies indicates that compared with chemotherapy alone, use of the cancer drug bevacizumab in combination with chemotherapy or biological therapy is associated with an ... full story

ScienceDaily features breaking news and videos about the latest discoveries in health, technology, the environment, and more -- from major news services and leading universities, scientific journals, and research organizations.